Impulsive People Weigh More, According To Study

We all know eating too much and moving too little can add a little extra around the waist. But can your personality lead to weight gain too?

A new study published by the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology says it’s possible.

Three researchers from the US Department of Health and Human Services followed nearly 2,000 people over a 50-year life span and found those who were more impulsive were likely to be about 24 pounds heavier than those who weren’t. They also found that subjects who weren’t terribly friendly may experience “a greater increase in the Body Mass Index across the adult life span.”

In other words, people who are nice and make a habit of looking before they leap tend to weigh less as they get older.

The findings were not entirely surprising. In 2006, the Maastricht University found that the most overweight children were also the most impulsive, and a study done in 2008 by the University of Alabama discovered obese women had much lower impulse control than their thinner counterparts.

So maybe thinking twice — or even three times — before eating that donut is a good idea after all.